CHICAGO — Every month since the Russian invasion of her homeland, Liliia Popovych has volunteered to work extra shifts at her hospital as a nurse, sending the extra money to her family and friends living under war.

Her grandparents, a world away in Ukraine, wake each day to sirens warning of incoming rockets. They lay flowers on the road as car caravans pass by carrying the bodies of fallen soلذلك ، يوم الأربعاء ،ش  "We're just fighting on our front line here," said Popovych, 30. "I am doing what I can do in diaspora."

Half a year since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, USA TODAY reporters reconnected with Ukrainians across the globe who first shared their experiences during the early stages of the war.

While some are struggling under Russian occupation or living amid fierce combat and shelling, others in the U.S. and Europe are adapting to new countries and a new normal. Several said they worry public attention to the war and its human toll is waning.

So on Wednesday, as Ukrainians gathered in downtown Chicago to commemorate Ukrainian independence with a flag raising, Popovych went to work.